Things in the Pokémon world which just don't make sense (by pokémon standards)

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Solosis having more special attack than Arceus.. I mean, it's a ball.. Of goo.. With a face..

I think the problem here is that people expect Legendaries to be some sort of "higher class" of Pokemon in all respects, when in reality, Legendaries are just abnormally powerful by comparison. Not totally superior, just in possession more more raw power. The best thing to look at in cases like this is probably the Pokemon-in-question's BST, which generally gives us a good idea as to what that Pokemon's overall level of potency is.

Originally Posted by Lord Zoroark

Listen, you gotta remember these things; always avoid claims of Fennekin being (or becoming) part Fighting-type, don't tick off mods, and NEVER (and I mean NEVER!) suggest that Arceus is the God of Pokemon when Endolise is online. If you somehow make this mistake, run for the hills before he attempts to murder you via tongue lashing.

Haven't read every reply, so some of these might have been said before;
1) I just hatched a Kangaskhan from an egg. It has a baby in its pouch. Shouldn't the pokemon just hatched be that baby?
2) Ten year old children being out of school and travelling the world, on their own.
3) You can wander into just about any house you like and no one ever bats an eyelid.
4) Why does Glacia, an Ice type specialist, base herself in Hoenn, where only two families of ice types exist?
5) Why was Flint an Elite Four member in D/P? Had he been an early Gym Leader with, say, Monferno and Ponyta, no one would have batted an eyelid!
6) How can I evolve Slowpoke into Slowbro or Slowking without a Shellder on my team? For that matter, how can I do so when I am miles away from the sea meaning they can't get one themselves, such as up a mountain or in a desert?
7) Why does Remoraid, a fish, and thus an animal with a spine, evolve into an Octillery, a cephalopod mollusc without a bone in its body. Where is the link, apart from them both living in water?
8) I just lost to a wild pokemon and somehow dropped 236 pokemon dollars whilst escaping. How did that happen? Why does the character not keep a hold of such an important thing as his money?
9) Bastiodon (based on Triceratops), Rampardos (based on Pachycephalosaurus), Archeops (based on Archeopteryx), Carracostoa (based on Archelon), Aerodactyl (based on a Pterosaur) and Omastar (based on an Ammonite) are all extinct, and yet Meganium (Camarasaurus), Tyranitar (Tyrannosaurus), Lapras (Plesiosaurus), Tropius (Brachiosaurus), Krookodile (Baryonyx, sort of), Sceptile (sort of Dilophosaurus), Torterra (Sort of Ankylosaurus), Mamoswine (a Woolly Mammoth/Pig) and Raikou (a Sabre-toothed Cat) clearly are not. How has that happened?
10) Why do six Exeggcute (whose pokedex entries clearly specify are individuals) only grow into one Exeggutor?
11) If those indiviual Exeggcute gather together, why are they always in groups of six, and why is one always smashed?
12) If I can catch a group of six Exeggcute all in one pokeball, why can't I do that with a school of Goldeen, a flock of Pidgey or better yet a mix and match? You can battle two wild pokemon at a time in some circumstances. Why don't the same rules apply here as with Exeggcute?
13) How do I get a Mageton when I only caught one Magnemite?
14) Why does Eevee not evolve into the Sun Pokemon Espeon through use of the Sun Stone? For that matter, what about the Moon Pokemon Umbreon and the Moon Stone?
15) There are no pokemon based on Dolphins, a type of animal just about everybody loves.
16) Why does Luvdisc not evolve into Alomomola, when quite clearly it should, especially when you look at some of the other pokemon evolutions (like Remoraid to Octillery, as mentioned above)
17) Why only four moves? Surely by now it is possible to expand on this number. Are Pokemon actually dumber than most sources make out?
18) If Alakazam has an IQ of more than 5000 and can remember everything it has encountered since birth, why does it "forget" an old move like every other pokemon?
19) For that matter, how do Psyduck and Slowpoke remember any moves at all?
20) I can battle with my Charmeleon when underwater.
21) How does battling with an Electrode on a mountainside not have more disasterous results?
22) When can we have Double-Edge, Razor Wind, BubbleBeam, Seismic Toss, Dragonbreath, Body Slam and Mega Punch back as TM moves, or at least move tutor moves?
23) Squirtle can learn Bubble, but not upgrade to BubbleBeam?
24) Vaporeon is the Bubble Jet Pokemon, and yet learns neither Bubble nor BubbleBeam.
25) We still cannot really choose our trainer's appearance. Is it that hard to give us a choice of, say, three boys and three girls? The Union Room changes our appearance to a different sprite, why can't we play as that sprite? It can't be too hard.
26) Lickitung. What is it, besides odd?
27) Wobbuffet. What is it, besides odd?
28) Nidoking, Nidoqueen and Rhydon. The basically the same design occurring three times in the same Generation.
29) Garbodor. Who designed it, who approved it, and were they fired for it?
30) No one at Nintendo saw Jynx's design as being potentially problematic when preparing to release the games outside of Japan.
31) Tangela. Not saying its bad or anything, but what is it hiding? What could be more embarrasing than its bright red boots.
32) Come to that, where did Tangela get its red boots?
33) When Timburr evolves into Gurdurr, how does its wooden post become a metal gurdur? People complain about evolution being in the games, yet no one bats an eyelid at this blatant violation of the laws of physics!
34) Cubone wears the skull of its dead mother, and yet I can breed Marowak in game, the offspring is wearing a skull and the mother is still alive.
35) Also, you can breed a male Marowak with a Ditto and still get a Cubone with a skull on its head. Where did the skull come from, as Ditto has no bones at all.
36) The daycare couple. How close a watch are they actually keeping on my pokemon when, even after two hundred eggs, the couple still don't know where the eggs come from!
37) Magby, Magmar and Magmortar. What the hell are they?
38) Grimer evolves into Muk. How does that actually work? Essentially Muk is just a bigger Grimer.
39) How can Vespiquen's Heal Order, Attack Order and Defend Order moves work when I am on a mountainside, miles away from the habitat of the Combee?
40) Who discovered you could get milk from a Miltank and what the hell did he think he was doing at the time?

What in the world does this even mean? "Why was he an E4 member?" Because that is what Game Freak made him. Is there some sort of logic to you're thinking that he should've just been a random trainer?

I think he's trying to say that it didn't make much sense for Flint to have only two Fire-types on his team in DP. Had he been an early Gym Leader, he would have gotten away with it a little easier, considering DP's Fire-type distribution was horrendous.

I think he's trying to say that it didn't make much sense for Flint to have only two Fire-types on his team in DP. Had he been an early Gym Leader, he would have gotten away with it a little easier, considering DP's Fire-type distribution was horrendous.

My point exactly. As an Elite Four member, the D/P Flint just didn't work. It was great that Platinum corrected this.

-Exeggcute->Exeggutor
-Remoraid->Octillary
-Kangaskhan
-Colress' hair
-Gary MF Oak's swag
-People's obsession with character customization in the main series
-Nidoqueen's inability to breed\
-Breaking and Entering,though this can apply to RPGs as a whole
-How Pika managed to break an Onix

Haven't read every reply, so some of these might have been said before;
1) I just hatched a Kangaskhan from an egg. It has a baby in its pouch. Shouldn't the pokemon just hatched be that baby?
2) Ten year old children being out of school and travelling the world, on their own.
3) You can wander into just about any house you like and no one ever bats an eyelid.
4) Why does Glacia, an Ice type specialist, base herself in Hoenn, where only two families of ice types exist?
5) Why was Flint an Elite Four member in D/P? Had he been an early Gym Leader with, say, Monferno and Ponyta, no one would have batted an eyelid!
6) How can I evolve Slowpoke into Slowbro or Slowking without a Shellder on my team? For that matter, how can I do so when I am miles away from the sea meaning they can't get one themselves, such as up a mountain or in a desert?
7) Why does Remoraid, a fish, and thus an animal with a spine, evolve into an Octillery, a cephalopod mollusc without a bone in its body. Where is the link, apart from them both living in water?
8) I just lost to a wild pokemon and somehow dropped 236 pokemon dollars whilst escaping. How did that happen? Why does the character not keep a hold of such an important thing as his money?
9) Bastiodon (based on Triceratops), Rampardos (based on Pachycephalosaurus), Archeops (based on Archeopteryx), Carracostoa (based on Archelon), Aerodactyl (based on a Pterosaur) and Omastar (based on an Ammonite) are all extinct, and yet Meganium (Camarasaurus), Tyranitar (Tyrannosaurus), Lapras (Plesiosaurus), Tropius (Brachiosaurus), Krookodile (Baryonyx, sort of), Sceptile (sort of Dilophosaurus), Torterra (Sort of Ankylosaurus), Mamoswine (a Woolly Mammoth/Pig) and Raikou (a Sabre-toothed Cat) clearly are not. How has that happened?
10) Why do six Exeggcute (whose pokedex entries clearly specify are individuals) only grow into one Exeggutor?
11) If those indiviual Exeggcute gather together, why are they always in groups of six, and why is one always smashed?
12) If I can catch a group of six Exeggcute all in one pokeball, why can't I do that with a school of Goldeen, a flock of Pidgey or better yet a mix and match? You can battle two wild pokemon at a time in some circumstances. Why don't the same rules apply here as with Exeggcute?
13) How do I get a Mageton when I only caught one Magnemite?
14) Why does Eevee not evolve into the Sun Pokemon Espeon through use of the Sun Stone? For that matter, what about the Moon Pokemon Umbreon and the Moon Stone?
15) There are no pokemon based on Dolphins, a type of animal just about everybody loves.
16) Why does Luvdisc not evolve into Alomomola, when quite clearly it should, especially when you look at some of the other pokemon evolutions (like Remoraid to Octillery, as mentioned above)
17) Why only four moves? Surely by now it is possible to expand on this number. Are Pokemon actually dumber than most sources make out?
18) If Alakazam has an IQ of more than 5000 and can remember everything it has encountered since birth, why does it "forget" an old move like every other pokemon?
19) For that matter, how do Psyduck and Slowpoke remember any moves at all?
20) I can battle with my Charmeleon when underwater.
21) How does battling with an Electrode on a mountainside not have more disasterous results?
22) When can we have Double-Edge, Razor Wind, BubbleBeam, Seismic Toss, Dragonbreath, Body Slam and Mega Punch back as TM moves, or at least move tutor moves?
23) Squirtle can learn Bubble, but not upgrade to BubbleBeam?
24) Vaporeon is the Bubble Jet Pokemon, and yet learns neither Bubble nor BubbleBeam.
25) We still cannot really choose our trainer's appearance. Is it that hard to give us a choice of, say, three boys and three girls? The Union Room changes our appearance to a different sprite, why can't we play as that sprite? It can't be too hard.
26) Lickitung. What is it, besides odd?
27) Wobbuffet. What is it, besides odd?
28) Nidoking, Nidoqueen and Rhydon. The basically the same design occurring three times in the same Generation.
29) Garbodor. Who designed it, who approved it, and were they fired for it?
30) No one at Nintendo saw Jynx's design as being potentially problematic when preparing to release the games outside of Japan.
31) Tangela. Not saying its bad or anything, but what is it hiding? What could be more embarrasing than its bright red boots.
32) Come to that, where did Tangela get its red boots?
33) When Timburr evolves into Gurdurr, how does its wooden post become a metal gurdur? People complain about evolution being in the games, yet no one bats an eyelid at this blatant violation of the laws of physics!
34) Cubone wears the skull of its dead mother, and yet I can breed Marowak in game, the offspring is wearing a skull and the mother is still alive.
35) Also, you can breed a male Marowak with a Ditto and still get a Cubone with a skull on its head. Where did the skull come from, as Ditto has no bones at all.
36) The daycare couple. How close a watch are they actually keeping on my pokemon when, even after two hundred eggs, the couple still don't know where the eggs come from!
37) Magby, Magmar and Magmortar. What the hell are they?
38) Grimer evolves into Muk. How does that actually work? Essentially Muk is just a bigger Grimer.
39) How can Vespiquen's Heal Order, Attack Order and Defend Order moves work when I am on a mountainside, miles away from the habitat of the Combee?
40) Who discovered you could get milk from a Miltank and what the hell did he think he was doing at the time?

So many of these have already been answered.

Originally Posted by Sprinter1988

29) Garbodor. Who designed it, who approved it, and were they fired for it?

For this one specifically, you should probably expect to get yelled at. I'm too sick of the anti-Garbodor/Vanillite/Klink crap to bother, though.

Originally Posted by Lord Zoroark

Listen, you gotta remember these things; always avoid claims of Fennekin being (or becoming) part Fighting-type, don't tick off mods, and NEVER (and I mean NEVER!) suggest that Arceus is the God of Pokemon when Endolise is online. If you somehow make this mistake, run for the hills before he attempts to murder you via tongue lashing.

hello i used to do art and run clubs and play competitive and then i was inactive for a long time and now im back-ish maybe
my 3DS FC is 4811/7177/1372
my name is Liam, it's nice to meet you
/u/ChapterLiam of /r/SmashBros

Explain how Ash has encountered maybe 275,000 Pokemon and has found maybe 4 wild Shinies.

Sounds about right according to my shiny encounter record.

Originally Posted by Lord Zoroark

Listen, you gotta remember these things; always avoid claims of Fennekin being (or becoming) part Fighting-type, don't tick off mods, and NEVER (and I mean NEVER!) suggest that Arceus is the God of Pokemon when Endolise is online. If you somehow make this mistake, run for the hills before he attempts to murder you via tongue lashing.

Eh... I mean, that is a ton of encounter. Lets say you encounter 20,000 pokemon. As the odds are about 8,000, you'd think that you would get 2 Pokemon out of the 20,000. If Ash has encountered something near a quarter million or a half million, how has he seen so few? What like, a shiny hoot-hoot, a shiny butterfree and then i think there was that trainer w/ a shiny ditto? there were more, but a lot owned by trainers. If i get 1 shiny in about 8000, ash shouldve seen 34.375. That's 275,000 / 8,000. Please explain.

EDIT: Thats what I thought.

How Pika managed to break an Onix

YES!!!

Last edited by Chapter; 6th December 2012 at 11:06 PM.

hello i used to do art and run clubs and play competitive and then i was inactive for a long time and now im back-ish maybe
my 3DS FC is 4811/7177/1372
my name is Liam, it's nice to meet you
/u/ChapterLiam of /r/SmashBros

I'm sure this has been answered somewhere already, and maybe it doesn't even apply to this particular thread, but why does Ash's Pikachu seem to revert to level 5 at the beginning of every new region?

Also, Beldum's catch rate.. It has the same catch rate as Mewtwo.. And a lower catch rate than Kyogre and Groudon (Though I know that's just to make catching them somewhat possible when they're the mascot legendary)

but why does Ash's Pikachu seem to revert to level 5 at the beginning of every new region?

He doesn't. "Levels" in the anime aren't some fixed number. Just like an athlete can't sit on their butt and expect to still be in tip top shape, the same goes for Pokemon.

Also: In Hoenn and Unova, there are specific reasons why Pikachu is weakened at the beginning of the saga and anyone who actually bothered to watch the episodes instead of repeating anime-hating talking points would know why.

I'm part of the staff at Project Pokemon! Smod in forums, AOP in IRC, Administrator on Shoddy. Come visit us. Our Project is Pokemon!

2) Ten year old children being out of school and travelling the world, on their own.

Different culture.

We have that even in our world; see how the legislation varies from country to country when it comes to the minimum age for driving, buying alcoholic beverage, or to be judged with criminal responsibility. That depends on the country, on the culture, so you can simply say people in Pokémonland think 10-year-olds are old enough to go on a journey (even because they will be acompanied by superpowerful pets).

But in fact, no one said anything about ten years in the game, that's anime stuff. We know Red was 11 when he started his journey, and we've seen far younger people traveling around too, while the BW characters were considerably older than 11 when they left Nuvema Town. There seems to be no age restriction in the games.

Originally Posted by Sprinter1988

3) You can wander into just about any house you like and no one ever bats an eyelid.

RPG.

Originally Posted by Sprinter1988

4) Why does Glacia, an Ice type specialist, base herself in Hoenn, where only two families of ice types exist?

Hoenn is not her home region, she says that in her dialogue.

She probably comes from a colder region with more Ice-types and went to Hoenn in order to hone her skills by training in unfavorable climate, since Hoenn seems to be a tropical region.

Originally Posted by Sprinter1988

5) Why was Flint an Elite Four member in D/P? Had he been an early Gym Leader with, say, Monferno and Ponyta, no one would have batted an eyelid!

This doesn't even make any sense.

Originally Posted by Sprinter1988

6) How can I evolve Slowpoke into Slowbro or Slowking without a Shellder on my team? For that matter, how can I do so when I am miles away from the sea meaning they can't get one themselves, such as up a mountain or in a desert?

Because games were more limited back in that day. If Slowpoke was introduced in, say, Gen IV, it would probably have an evolution method similar to that of Mantyke.

Originally Posted by Sprinter1988

7) Why does Remoraid, a fish, and thus an animal with a spine, evolve into an Octillery, a cephalopod mollusc without a bone in its body. Where is the link, apart from them both living in water?

Revolver and gun. Plus, Pokémon evolution is a magical thing, they gain mass from nowhere, sprout wings, develop new powers out of the blue, even change types.

The Pokémon you mentioned were based on these animals, they're not these animals. We can simply assume the ones who still exist came to be way later.

Originally Posted by Sprinter1988

14) Why does Eevee not evolve into the Sun Pokemon Espeon through use of the Sun Stone? For that matter, what about the Moon Pokemon Umbreon and the Moon Stone?

Because it doesn't react at all to the radiation of either stone. Going by your logic, Larvesta should evolve into Sun Pokémon Volcarona by being exposed to the Sun Stone too.

Out-of-universe, they needed to create a new method of evolution in order to justify why Eevee couldn't evolve into Espeon and Umbreon before. If they went by your logic, in-universe it wouldn't make sense, because said Stones wouldn't do anything to Eevee if you tried to use them one Generation before.

Yeah but surely having remembered that it was a 10 year old who stopped your grunts in various locations...okay one location (Mt. Moon) you'd figure...maybe we should cover our bases a little better. Mind you to be fair, In Colosseum you could highjack a train straight to the villains secret lab so I guess sometimes it's hard to consider everything.